The managed economy

September 22, 2009 — buckeyerino

The managed economy.  Not to be confused with the free market economy.

I could provide dozens of examples, but this one, concerning University Hospitals in Cleveland, as reported in the Plain Dealer, works about as well as any.

Ohio’s legislators in DC are already naming the price at which their votes can be bought for the Obamacare bill:  earmarks for University Hospitals.

Apparently, this is not a move that all hospitals in Ohio would agree upon.  Cleveland Clinic decried the move as favoritism.

Many voters are catching on to this trend of political manipulation of the marketplace since Obama took office, but, unfortunately, our pay-to-play legislators have been picking winners and losers in the marketplace for years.  It happens at the state level, too, so there’s not a level playing field, and we’ve seen up close how that drives business away from Ohio.

In a free market economy, consumers do the picking and choosing.

If we want to return to a free market economy, government will have to relinquish the reins and stop trying to micromanage it.  That’s partly why I feel a campaign slogan of “DO LESS!“ would appeal to me, as a voter.

Posted in National Politics, State Politics. Tags: , . 5 Comments »

DO LESS!

September 22, 2009 — buckeyerino

Want my vote for Congress next year?  Want my vote for state elections in 2010?  Then let “DO LESS!” be your campaign slogan.

One caveat would be that our nation needs to retain its leadership role internationally, but on the domestic front, the people of our nation are highly literate and highly technologically advanced compared with earlier eras in our nation’s history.  Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness can be maintained more readily through decentralized government in this era than through any prior era in our history.  Paradoxically, the centralization of government, the consolidation of power, continues to flow away from the people, away from the communities, and toward the state capitals, and especially toward DC.  We, the People, are better equipped than ever before to take responsibility for ourselves.  Stop trying to baby us.

Even if you politicians lack confidence in We, the People, you need to rein in government spending, anyway.  The economy can’t sustain the government’s growth.  We, taxpayers, can’t sustain your growth.  By fiscal necessity, you must shrink, whether you think it’s prudent or not.

Don’t try to do more with less.  DO LESS with less.

I want my government to do less.  I want bureaucracies merged or eradicated.  Non-profit organizations that depend on big government to award them funding as if our national and state treasuries are Santa Claus?  Sorry, but non-profits, like the for-profit sector, will have to downsize in this economy, too.

Pay raises in government?  Don’t even think about it.  What’s the justification you always try to hoodwink us with?  Doesn’t it go something like this?  “We need the best people, and the private sector could lure them away if we don’t offer competitive compensation.”  Well, I tell you, in this economic environment, such justification is PHONEY!  Let them go to where the compensation is more to their liking.  We need the most selfless people, not the most selfish people, in our government.  Don’t kid yourselves that you had the best people to begin with, anyway.  Can’t you see that those “best” people have created a mess?

The government’s social safety net?  Make it a smaller net.  The most important net should be private-sector employment.  If employment opportunities are curtailed because of the safety net, guess what?  Employment gets higher priority.  Apparently, you aren’t listening, because unemployment is on the rise.

Politicos in Columbus, stop issuing bonds.  They have to be repaid with interest.  If the objectives that we financed with bonds are important enough, then we can budget them out of current expenditures.  If they aren’t important enough that we’d budget for them out of current expenditures, then they aren’t important enough to issue bonds for, since we must pay interest on on them.

Stop fretting that eliminating programs will hurt the most vulnerable members of society.  Under the current regime that you’ve concocted, we’re all being hurt, we’re all vulnerable, and the members of society most capable of sustaining the rest of society are being penalized the most.  If private sector employment rises, it not only benefits the most fit, it also increases opportunities for those who are less so.

There are too many government agendas.  They must be streamlined and prioritized.

Case in point:  Merge the ORSC, the Ohio Rehabilitation Services Commission, with ODJFS.  Right now, the ORSC has separate offices from ODJFS, but I have no idea why.  Merge the Department of Aging with ODJFS, as well.  Merge all the social service delivery systems into one to eradicate duplication.

Eliminate the Department of Development.  You already have a Department of Commerce.  In fact the Department of Commerce could absorb the Department of Transportation, the Department of Insurance, the Department of Travel and Tourism, among others.

The Ohio Department of Public Safety could absorb the Department of Corrections, the Ohio EPA, and the Department of Youth Services, among others.  Why do we need these additional line items in our budget?

We don’t need a Department of Education as it is currently structured.  We don’t need a state superintendent.  School districts can handle this at the local level.  For collecting data from the school districts across the state, all you need are clerical workers.  You don’t need a think tank staffed with expensive consultants.  If local school districts need some help along that vein, they can consult with the education faculties at our state universities.

When you incumbent politicians campaign, don’t brag to me about what funding you secured for whatever lofty noble goal or whatever down-on-their-luck constituency.  I don’t think your worth to us taxpayers is measured by the $$$$ you spent.  I think the $$$$ you saved us is more worth our while.

The more you politicians do, and the more you spend to do it, the more burdened We, the People are.  Not only are you costing us money, you are costing us liberty.

Want my vote?

DO LESS!

Posted in National Politics, State Politics. Tags: , . 2 Comments »

Ohio Supreme Court says We, the People, will be able to vote on Strickland’s slots plan

September 21, 2009 — buckeyerino

I’m pleased to say that the Ohio Supreme Court has determined that the people of Ohio may hold a referendum on Gov. Ted Strickland’s lottery expansion plan that would have introduced Video Lottery Terminals to Ohio’s horsetracks.

Here’s a report on the story from Cleveland’s Plain Dealer.

Had the decision gone the other way, the checks and balances that the people have, to hold the state accountable for how it raises revenue, would have been . . . obliterated!

Posted in gambling, State Politics. Tags: , . Leave a Comment »

Gambling buys politicians

September 18, 2009 — buckeyerino

I’m glad somebody besides me is starting to connect the dots, even though the proposed remedy is garbage.

Please read this article about a proposal from state senator Keith Faber (R-Celina) from The Daily Briefing section of The Columbus Dispatch.

There is finally an acknowledgment that the various gambling cartels (lottery vendors, casino tycoons, race track owners, off-track betting parlor operators, etc.) routinely buy up politicians.  It doesn’t matter whether you are Democrat, Republican, or even Libertarian, campaign money donated by gambling interests is shaping your political party and shaping Ohio’s elections.  For the most part, those politicians that are the most ethically-challenged are the ones that are able to retain office thanks to gambling contributions to political coffers.

So, if you, voters, would like to “clean house” of the corrupt rascals that reside in the halls of government, you’d do well to size up how politicians have aligned themselves on the issue of gambling.

Faber’s bill would limit contributions to candidates for state offices from the gambling industry to just $500.  This is well-intentioned, and shows, like I said, that someone besides me is connecting the dots, but this “remedy” would be a huge flop, much like McCain-Feingold in the federal campaign finance arena.  Just as there are gaping loopholes in McCain-Feingold that you can drive a truck through, Faber’s bill would be just as flimsy.

The Issue 3 crowd has the Fraternal Order of Police stumping for it.  Even if candidates could only accept $500 from the gambling industry, the FOP could leverage considerable influence in election races on behalf of the gambling industry.

So many officeholders of both major political parties favor one gambling faction or another (completely out of proportion to the allegiances of Ohio voters who’ve rejected the past four gambling issues that appeared on statewide ballots) that one ought to question whether the gambling industry already picks and chooses the frontrunners in primary contests.

Don’t believe me?  Please read this Mark Naymik article from the Plain Dealer (read the WHOLE THING), and ask yourself, what’s Bob Bennett doing, calling Republican operatives all over the state asking for support for Issue 3?  Are you starting to get the picture?  Is it dawning on you yet?  And what would Faber’s bill do to the flow of donations from the gambling industry to political parties?  It would increase it, since the direct flow to candidates, themselves, would be restricted.  This adds to the gambling industry’s leverage of party insiders who anoint and appoint.

But, like I said, this isn’t just a Republican Party phenomenon.  Read this article about interim Ohio Treasurer Kevin Boyce’s campaign from the Dayton Daily News.  The gambling industry, under Faber’s bill, would only be able to contribute $500 to the Boyce campaign, but Charlie Luken, former Democrat mayor of Cincinnati and current lobbyist for Key Bank who hosts fundraisers for Boyce, also happens to be a chairperson for the Issue 3 campaign.  Faber’s bill does nothing to address this.

Do you see the many tentacles extended just by one gambling faction, the cartel that is pushing Issue 3?

What if I started showing how far the tentacles of MTR, a rival gambling faction, stretched?  The spouse of Democrat Party chair Chris Redfern purportedly lobbies on behalf of MTR.  Strickland’s betrayal of his campaign pledges stand to benefit MTR as the vendor of the VLT slot machines that would be installed at racetracks on behalf of the Ohio Lottery.

Sandy Theis works as a spokesperson for both TruthPAC (mostly funded by MTR) and Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner.  When it came time to choose the pro and con arguments of Issue 3 that would be presented to Ohio voters, TruthPAC got the nod for the con side, while Ohio Roundtable, a truly anti-gambling organization, was shut out of the debate by Brunner.

MTR owns one of the Ohio horse tracks, and the horse track industry, in addition to it’s Democrat supporters, named above, has, in the past, also been backed by Republican heavy hitters like former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder.  The bio of state representative Terry Blair (R-38) clearly places him in the horse track camp.

Let’s not forget past gambling issues, and who was involved in supporting those efforts, too.  Prominent Cuyahoga County Republican Jim Trakas was a backer for last year’s failed Issue 6.  In 2006, Ohio Chancellor and prominent Cuyahoga County Democrat Eric Fingerhut was ushering another Issue 3, “Ohio Learn and Earn,” to the ballot.

A complete and exhaustive list of which Ohio politicians are bankrolled by which gambling factions would be difficult to compile due to length (and also due to the fact that some politicians play their cards close to the vest, hiding the gambling allegiances they have).

Do you see how wide the gambling industry has spread their nets to reel in politicians?  Or do I have to keep connecting dots?

All of this leads to the question:  What is inherently wrong about government favoring gambling? This is a question Libertarians are prone to ask, but many Republicans and Democrats ask the same question.

Some long answers to that question, from the perspective that gambling shrinks the economy, can be found here, here, here, and here.

The short answer is that the ethically-challenged politicians charged with the task of being gambling’s gatekeepers are able to consolidate their power through gambling’s redistribution of wealth.  I’ll let this sign from the 9/12 rally in DC spell it out for you:

redistribution

Remember that the gambling industry produces nothing. It exists just to plunder and redistribute wealth. The wealth is redistributed to help entrench the political status quo.

Also remember that just as we can’t tax our society into prosperity, we also can’t gamble our society into prosperity. Tax proceeds and gambling proceeds are used by elites for the same purposes: To consolidate, hold, and wield power and to subjugate the people.

Final question:  What do we do about it if Faber’s proposal won’t work?

We vote against Issue 3, we get a referendum for Strickland’s VLT plan on the ballot and vote that down.

We clamor for full transparency of political finances.  We inform voters.  We identify which politicians back gambling.  We recruit and support candidates who oppose gambling to challenge the candidates that back gambling.

Ideally, the state stops propping up the horsetracks and OTB parlors, allowing them to fail if they can’t remain profitable, and, finally, we put the Ohio Lottery, itself, back on the ballot for reconsideration, and urge voters to repeal it.

If we do these things, we will have empowered the people, toppled the status quo, improved the state’s economy, and put a huge dent in political corruption.

Posted in gambling, State Politics. Tags: , . 10 Comments »

Another reminder that Mark Stewart needs challengers in 2010 Lorain County Auditor election race

September 17, 2009 — buckeyerino

Lorain County residents, take inventory amongst yourselves and scrounge up some opposition for Mark Stewart in the race for Lorain County Auditor next year. I’d like to see a Democrat challenge him in the primary as well as see some competition in the general election. In 2006, Mark Stewart waltzed to re-election with no competition.

Lorain’s Morning Journal provides us with yet another example of how Mark Stewart hurts the county.  Past valuations by Stewart’s office for the property that once housed Ford’s Lorain Assembly Plant stand at $28 million.  The current owners say that the property is actually worth $2.3 million.  I’m not suggesting that we automatically believe the assertion of the current owners, but common sense will tell you which number is closer to actual market value.

A silver lining behind the cloud of declining property values amidst Ohio’s broken economy should be that it’s now cheaper for companies to invest in Ohio’s real estate.  Mark Stewart’s outlandish property valuations rob Lorain County of that silver lining,  deterring companies from investing in the county, and thereby derailing economic resurgence that could lead to improved employment numbers.

As I’ve noted in a prior blog article, you may be wondering why your property taxes aren’t decreasing even though the real estate market has been in freefall.  The best way to tackle this is to vote Stewart out of office, and to do that, we need to recruit candidates for the auditor’s race.

It’s not too early to file a Designation of Treasurer form to organize a candidate campaign committee and start raising funds.  Asking voters to donate funds should be easier in this race than for any other race, because supporting a challenge to Stewart could mean the end of being gouged on property taxes.

Posted in Local Politics. Tags: . 2 Comments »

Pics from DC on 9/12: It was crowded

September 17, 2009 — buckeyerino

Here’s my pictorial recap of the events of 9/12 during my trip to Washington DC.

This first picture is blurry, but that’s because I’m standing in a moving subway car as I’m snapping the photo.

dcsubway

When I stepped on the DC Metro’s Red Line subway in Rockville, Maryland, I encountered several people from Norwalk, Ohio, who had boarded the subway at the Shady Grove station. The reason for their subway trip was obvious by the protest signs they held: They were on their way to the 9/12 rally. They spotted me and said “There’s somebody from Ohio!” I made an excellent choice in choosing to wear an Ohio State Buckeyes t-shirt on 9/12, because I was greeted by Ohioans everywhere I went. Not only did I meet Ohioans from Norwalk, I met them from all over the state: Amherst, Lorain, Cleveland, Youngstown, Columbus, Cincinnati, Sharonville, Mason, Delaware, Toledo, Newark, Marion, Portsmouth, Lebanon, Lima, Moraine, Akron, Sidney, Perrysburg, Maumee, Westlake, North Olmsted, Fairborn, Beavercreek, Enon, New Carlisle, Lancaster, Powell, and so on and so forth.

When the subway rolled into DC to pick up local commuters, you should have seen the looks on the faces of the locals. I don’t think they’d ever before seen such a collection of independents and conservatives descending upon the capital in droves. I think they’d only seen liberals march on Washington before. The look on faces of the locals? They looked like they were seeing ghosts.

When we hopped off the subway, I guess we had supposed that the rally would be like a political party convention, grouped by states.  We were more amateur than that.  It was messier than that.  We combed through crowds, looking at everyone’s signs, seeing if there was a designated gathering point for Ohioans.  Apparently, there wasn’t.  Whoever the speakers were for the rally, it didn’t matter, because the low, faint rumble emanating from the feeble sound system wasn’t intelligible in the ruckus of the oversized crowd that couldn’t even fit onto Freedom Square.

onthemarch2

After a while, some got tired of milling around the square unable to hear the audio, so they began heading down Pennsylvania Avenue toward Capitol Hill about half-an-hour to an hour ahead of schedule.  It was good that they got underway, even though it was early, because there wasn’t enough space for all of us to converge on Freedom Square at once, anyway.

onthemarch3

After people started marching down Pennsylvania Avenue, I caught a glimpse of Ohio’s distinctively-shaped State Flag, and I gravitated toward it, as many Ohioans followed suit.

onthemarch4

Do you see the Ohio flag held high aloft between two lamp posts on the right half of the photo? There’s another Ohio flag on the left half of the photo, not held quite so high, as well as an OSU Buckeye banner almost dead center above the crowd. I tried to stay within about three blocks of the flags. When I, and others, were concerned that we’d strayed beyond the Ohio contingent, we’d reassure ourselves that we were still surrounded by fellow Ohioans by shouting “O-H,” which would receive the thunderous response of “I-O!” That’s how we stayed in touch with each other through the densely-packed mayhem of the march to the Capitol.  It was plainly evident to me that thousands, yes, thousands, of Ohioans were present, not to mention that I encountered individuals from all 50 (57?) states during the day’s events.

onthemarcdh1

Can you see the Capitol’s dome in the chasm between the buildings that line Pennsylvania Avenue?

During the march, cheers erupted as marchers beheld the side of a building which had the words of the First Amendment etched into the stone.

first amendment

The steps of the Capitol were cordoned off, so there were limits as to how closely we could approach. Also, near the Capitol, I encountered a C-Span staffer who was bemoaning his plight to a DC security officer. Apparently, the crowd was so packed, the C-Span staffer couldn’t wend his way to the media camera banks, and, in fact, he told the security officer he wasn’t exactly sure where the camera banks were set up, as he hadn’t even been able to catch a glimpse of the camera banks.  I briefly accosted the C-Span staffer to ask if it was possible for the public to tour the C-Span studios.  He said “no,” that one must know somebody on C-Span staff to gain access to the network’s facilities.

capitol dome

I feel sorry for the families who brought their kids along on the march, as public toilet facilities were so scarce that I don’t know how people with little bladders were going to make it through the day’s activities. Yes, there were a few port-a-potties, but the operative word is “few.” Just as the sound system was inadequate for the size of the crowd, so was the number of port-a-potties.

Despite the inadequacy of the sound system, there was a moment on the Capitol Hill lawn when the whole crowd took notice of a sound that came from the microphone. Someone had started to sing our national anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner,” and everyone stood at attention and doffed their hats. The crowd joined in the singing, but the crowd sang along in a whisper, whether to avoid drowning out the singing that could be faintly heard from the microphone, or whether from the inability to sing louder on the account of being emotionally choked up, it was hard to say. For me, I was emotionally choked up, and I silently mouthed the words during the occasions when my voice faltered. Applause erupted at the conclusion of the song, and faint garbled speech resumed.

The ground is fairly level in DC, so it was impossible for me to access a vantage point where I could snap a picture to encompass the entire crowd, but I tried.

capitol rally

Though I was in attendance, I really have no idea how many people were there. If you’re looking for a discussion of the numbers in attendance, I suggest that you take a look at Pajamas Media, where Charlie Martin has two articles, here and here, that attempt to estimate the size of the crowd.

Posted in National Politics. Tags: . 2 Comments »

Pics from DC on 9/12: Women have the best signs

September 16, 2009 — buckeyerino

I just got back from Washington DC a little over 24 hours ago, so I have some catching up to do.  I’m sorry I didn’t have the capability of uploading my pics sooner, when the events were more current.

I didn’t take any signs with me to the rally.  There wasn’t a shortage of signs, though.  Since the loudspeakers weren’t loud enough for featured speakers to be heard throughout the venues (perhaps they were expecting smaller crowds?) many of us circulated throughout the throngs to read people’s signs and ask people where they were from.  Since so many had never participated in a political rally before, it was difficult to sustain chants like the the professional astroturf mobs do so well.  We were just a bunch of grassroots amateurs, amazed at our surroundings, amazed at the turnout, amazed that we found ourselves even doing such a thing, and amazed at how far and we had trekked (and at what cost) to do it.

As I mentioned in the title of this piece, I think women hoisted the best signs at the rally.  I’m sure the men felt sincere about the messages that they displayed on their signs, such as “Taxed Enough Already,”  but they were . . . how shall I say it? . . . boring and repetitive.  If there were signs that brought a smile to my face, women were the ones brandishing them.  Here’s a sampling:

sign1

sign2

sign3

sign4

Posted in National Politics. 5 Comments »

Sep. and Oct. town halls with state rep Terry Boose

September 10, 2009 — buckeyerino

Mark your calendars!  September 17–Wellington.  September 24–Attica.  September 27–Vermilion.  October 8–Bellevue.  October 17–Norwalk.  State Rep Terry Boose (R-58) will be conducting town hall meetings in these communities on these dates.

Previously, Boose held town halls in Willard, Amherst, New London, LaGrange, and Grafton.  So, if you happen to be in one of those communities and you missed those town halls, you can still make your voice heard at the upcoming town halls.

A press release from Rep. Boose’s office appears below:

Local Legislator Terry Boose announces additional Town Hall Meetings

COLUMBUS— State Representative Terry Boose (R- Norwalk) announced today that he will be holding additional town hall meetings in his district.

“The town hall meetings we have had were a success,” Rep. Boose said. “It was great to get a chance to hear what is on the hearts and minds of the people I serve, and I look forward to hearing from more people in my district.”

Below is a list of the upcoming Town Hall meetings:

Thurs. 9/17/2009        Wellington      7:00pm – 8:30pm        Lorain County Community College Wellington Center

Thurs. 9/24/2009        Attica               6:00pm – 7:15pm        Attica Village Hall (Prior to Attica Council Meeting)

Sun. 9/27/2009           Vermilion        5:00pm – 7:00pm        Vermilion-on-the-Lake Clubhouse

Thurs. 10/8/2009        Bellevue          7:00pm – 8:30pm        Bellevue City Hall Council Chamber

Sat. 10/17/2009          Norwalk           11:00am – 12:30pm    Sheri’s Coffee House

The 58th House district includes Huron County, Western and Southern Lorain County, and Eastern Seneca County.

While pressing national issues have been at the forefront of media coverage, it should be noted that our state government is also in dire straits, particularly since the budget will have to be revisited.  Previously, Rep. Boose expressed his own views on the state budget.  These town halls are opportunities to express your own views on the state budget and any other matters facing Ohio.

Posted in State Politics. Tags: . 2 Comments »

Round-up of Issue 3 posts to date

September 3, 2009 — buckeyerino

Collecting My Thoughts, a right-of-center blog appearing in my blogroll under the State of Ohio Blogger Alliance heading, has posted an excerpt of an email discussion about Issue 3, the casino issue that Ohioans will see on the November ballot.  The right-of-center bloggers of Ohio are not of one mind on the gambling issue, and the excerpt shown was an attempt, on my part, to advocate against this and other gambling issues.

Another fairly recent blog entry against Issue 3 appeared at Writes Like She Talks, wherein JMZ points out that this year’s Issue 3 contains many of the same shortfalls as the Issue 3 (Learn and Earn) of 2006.

Madrigal Maniac has also fairly recently posted an entry against Issue 3, highlighting friction between proposed casinos and charitable organizations that raise funds via bingo.

Glass City Jungle has posted multiple Issue 3 entries.  Blog author Lisa Renee Ward has made a conscious effort to report the issue fairly, and her posts are generally quite newsy.  The charitable bingo angle is covered at GCJ, too.  The pro-casino lobby likes to recycle FOP endorsements, but mixed in with that coverage is opposition from Catholics and opposition from a rival gambling organization that calls itself TruthPAC.  Among the GCJ entries that struck a nerve with readers was one that noted a former supporter of the issue is now an opponent.

Kyle Sisk’s blog has also contained entries that have attempted to allow both sides to have their say (three installments to date.)  Also making an appearance on the blog was a guest post by yours truly, pointing out that gambling is akin to piracy.

My own blog, has a history of opposing gambling, and my most-viewed blog entry of all time dates back to last year’s failed Issue 6 casino issue, examining the shortfalls in terms of the microeconomics principles of opportunity cost and multiplier effect.  Prior Buckeye RINO coverage of this year’s Issue 3 includes  a post consisting of my email communications with casino spokespersons, a post showing the Issue 3 proposal is far inferior to the principles that led to the founding of the famous Monte Carlo casino, a post that points out the special rights that would be granted by the Ohio Constitution to special people who are not Ohioans, a post containing a rebuttal from casino proponents with my reply, a repeat of the post that appeared on Kyle Sisk’s blog, and a post questioning the massive amount of fraudulent signatures appearing on the petitions that the casino proponents filed.

Posted in gambling, State Politics. Tags: , . 3 Comments »

Write-ins surface for Lorain’s November elections

September 3, 2009 — buckeyerino

Lorain City Treasurer Tom Urbanek will have opposition after all, though Karen Shawver’s name will not appear on the ballot.

Wednesday, Sept. 2, was the deadline for filing as a write-in candidate for November’s general election.

If you go to the polls intending to vote for a write-in, and you suffer a momentary loss of memory, not remembering the name, or perhaps unsure of the proper spelling of the name, of the write-in you intended to vote for, you can ask polling place workers for a list of write-in candidates prior to voting.  Upon request, poll workers can also instruct you how to cast a write-in vote if you are unfamiliar with the procedure.

Also filing as a write-in candidate was R.J. Budway for the Lorain City Law Director race.  Budway’s write-in candidacy is the local Democrat Party’s insurance policy.

Interim Law Director Patrick Riley’s name was placed on the November ballot by a vote of the county’s elections board when there were no paper documents establishing Riley’s candidacy.

Budway won’t be campaigning so long as Riley isn’t knocked off the ballot by legal challenges.  Republican candidate Mike Scherach, so far, has asked the elections board for a hearing which seems unlikely to be granted, and hasn’t committed yet to taking the matter to court.

Elyria’s Chronicle-Telegram has the coverage of the write-in candidacies.   Republican elections board member Bob Rousseau had something to say about the latest move by the Democrats:

“If they’re hedging their bets, doesn’t that tell you they’re not confident in their case?”

Indeed, documentation of Riley’s candidacy is entirely missing, and an unusual elections board vote is the only verifiable strand of evidence placing Riley’s name on the ballot.

As for Urbanek, the Lorain City Treasurer, he created a stir this summer when he did not join in the salary belt-tightening that other city employees endured in consequence of Lorain’s faltering finances.  Furthermore, it was revealed that Urbanek, from his work office during office hours, was posting self-serving comments on conversation forums at LorainCounty.com under a pseudonym.

Posted in Local Politics. Tags: . 4 Comments »

Batchelder press release: Bill introduced seeking to stop county officials from seeking campaign funds from their subordinates

September 3, 2009 — buckeyerino

Note:  The following is a press release from the office of State Rep. William Batchelder (R-69), minority leader in the Ohio House of Representatives.

Batchelder Announces Bill to Strengthen Campaign Finance Laws

COLUMBUS – Ohio House Republican Leader William G. Batchelder (R-Medina) today announced plans to introduce legislation to close an avenue for corruption in Ohio’s campaign finance law, in response to the ongoing investigation within Cuyahoga County. Batchelder’s proposal would prohibit contributions to be made from county employees to county official’s campaign committees.

“Allowing county officeholders to solicit and receive contributions from their employees opens the door for corruption in government,” Batchelder said. “It’s a mistrust of one’s obligation to the public.”

FBI officials have continued to investigate Cuyahoga County as it became clear that county officials received financial contributions from their employees. Cuyahoga County Treasurer Jim Rokakis, one of the few Cuyahoga County Democrat officials who have not been implicated by the ongoing scandal, has worked with Leader Batchelder to draft this legislation. Recently, Rokakis has observed thousands of dollars being raised by county officials from their employees.

“You have to get the money out of politics,” Rokakis said. “It is the only way to have real reform.”

“The ramifications of the Cuyahoga County government crisis are still uncertain,” Batchelder continued. “It is necessary for us to fix these shortfalls so that the people can have a more transparent and accountable government.”

Posted in Local Politics, State Politics. Tags: , . Leave a Comment »

The crux of oral arguments on slots

September 2, 2009 — buckeyerino

Oral arguments were made before the Ohio Supreme Court over whether the voters will have any say on the matter of Video Lottery Terminals at racetracks.

The Ohio Channel has a video clip of the oral arguments.

The lottery slots proponents argue that the people do not have the right to a referendum in the matter because appropriations are immune from referendum, and that the slots proposal is an appropriation because the money provided by slots has already been spent on education.  Furthermore, the slots proponents argue that under Ohio’s Constitution, the lottery commission has always possessed the authority to implement the slots plan.

Referendum backers argue that the slots proposal is not an appropriation.  It is a mechanism for raising revenue, and thus is not immune from referendum.  The referendum backers deny that the Ohio Constitution, alone, grants the authority to implement the slots plan, and the evidence cited is that the authority is only granted by way of HB1, the biennial budget, thus, without explicit legislation granting that authority, the lottery commission does NOT possess the authority.  Appropriations laws are temporary, because they expend money only for a biennium.  The portion of HB1’s legislation that authorizes the slots, however, is a permanent change, not a change that lasts only for two years, highlighting the point that the slots proposal is not an appropriation, and is therefore not immune from referendum.

I was particularly struck by an exchange between Justice Judith Lanzinger and slots attorney Benjamin C. Mizer that occurred 32 minutes and 5 seconds into the oral arguments, wherein Justice Lanzinger suggested that Mizer was adding language to the Ohio Constitution for the sake of advancing his argument about appropriations.  What struck me is how the referendum rights of the people of Ohio are limited pertaining to appropriations.  At 33:18, Mizer said that Constitutional limitations on referendum power were enacted because:

” . . . we didn’t want the power of the purse to be infringed by the referendum power, and, specifically, above all, the people did not want the referendum power to be used to create fiscal instability and fiscal crisis and to tie up appropriations.”

And Mizer reiterates at the 34-minute mark the danger of allowing a referendum:

” . . . what would happen in this case is the gumming up of the works of the budget bill and tying up a 2.3 billion-dollar appropriation.”

Oh horrors!  We can’t have the people stop government spending!  Why, uh, . . . that could lead to  . . . fiscal instability!  Crisis!  Mass hysteria!  The Apocalypse!  The extinction of humanity!  The end of the world as we know it!  Annihilation of the Universe!

So, we, the people, under Ohio’s Constitution, already have the deck stacked against us when it comes to checking and balancing the legislature’s fiscal policies.

The attorney for the referendum backers, Michael A. Carvin, warns that if the court accepts the argument that the slots provisions are an appropriation because the money has already been spent on education and is therefore immune to referendum, then going forward, any money-raising mechanism that the legislature can imaginatively devise can be rendered immune to referendum by spending the money on a specific line item before the money is even collected.

If that were to happen, I would find that an extremely dangerous precedent to set, as the people would have no check or balance whatsoever on whatever money the legislature chooses to confiscate from the people by whatever method.

I sincerely hope that LetOhioVote.org, the plaintiff represented by Mr. Carvin, prevails in this case.

From other blogs on this issue, for, against, and indifferent:

Madrigal Maniac

Southeastern Ohio Conservative Thoughts

The Pullins Report

Ohio Daily Blog

Glass City Jungle

Posted in gambling, State Politics. Tags: , . 3 Comments »

The imminent rebellion: States vs the Federal government

August 31, 2009 — buckeyerino

Note:  This is a guest blog entry submitted by James Williamson, one of my younger brothers, who is an Ohio native currently residing in Utah.

Not long ago while listening to KSL radio in Salt Lake City I heard that the state legislature was proposing an unusual move if the US congress passes the “Obamacare” bill:  nullification.  While this concept is not new it has been a while since we have seen it surface in this country from legitimate sources.  The state legislature here discussed passing a measure that would nullify the federal law and put in its place a state law.  I am not sure of the legal arguments for such a move but it seems our legislature here in Utah is not alone.

This quote is lifted directly from Wikipedia after searching for secession movements in the United States:

“On April 1, 2009, the Georgia State Senate passed a resolution 43-1 which affirmed the right of States to nullify Federal laws. The resolution also included the assertion that if Congress took certain steps, including restricting firearms or ammunition, the United States government would cease to exist ”  http://www.legis.ga.gov/legis/2009_10/fulltext/sr632.htm is listed as the reference and contains the full text of the resolution.

Why the Georgia state legislature felt the need to pass this resolution is becoming increasingly apparent.  A few of our legislative and executive branch leaders have apparently lost touch with reality. Voter rage was already on the rise with the passage of the TARP bailout in the fall of 2008.  Unfortunately it was not sufficient to create a significant change in the landscape of the congress.  The White House changed hands but it did not take long to find a new source of public outrage sponsered by the White House in the health care reform debate.  Rather than respond to the voters a few of our “fearless leaders” have decided to bully and intimidate congressmen and senators that do not share the view of our new “politiboro”.  This has been tried many times in the past in other countries with varying degrees of success but it is a rare occurence here and is one of the things that keeps our country free and makes it so great.

This political freedom of expression in terms of votes is now in real danger as there is a large disconnect between the will of the voters and the will of the elected.  Thus the drive to get things done quickly, hoping that things will improve before the next election and the voter rage will have time to cool.  In this I believe the hope of the current oligarchy will fail.
Consider the next statement by the governor of Texas (lifted from the same Wikipedia page):

“In April 2009, Rick Perry, the Governor of Texas, raised the issue of secession during a speech at a Tea Party protest: “Texas is a unique place. When we came into the union in 1845, one of the issues was that we would be able to leave if we decided to do that…My hope is that America and Washington in particular pays attention. We’ve got a great union. There’s absolutely no reason to dissolve it. But if Washington continues to thumb their nose at the American people, who knows what may come of that.”[39] After Perry’s comments received considerable attention and news coverage, Rasmussen Reports polled Texans and found that 31% of them believed that Texas has the right to secede from the United States, although only 18% would support secession.”  Reference: “In Texas, 31% Say State Has Right to Secede From U.S., But 75% Opt To Stay“. Rasmussen Reports. 2009-04-17. http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/states_general/texas/in_texas_31_say_state_has_right_to_secede_from_u_s_but_75_opt_to_stay. Retrieved 2009-04-19.

Secession movements have always existed in this country to some extent, but when the governor of the third most populous state (and right now perhaps the most solvent) starts talking secession someone in Washington ought to think twice about what they are doing.  This statement was made in April.  It is now August and the disconnect between the ambitions of the White House, Speaker, and Pro-tempore and the public will only seem to be growing daily.

Not long ago a Russian former KJB financial analyst (his name escapes me) predicted that the US would break up over the growing discontent of the financial inequity among the states.  Specifically that the states that have the greatest revenue gap (send more in taxes than they receive from the federal government) would stop sending tax revenue to Washington and that would cause a collapse of the system.  Ohio is the poster-child for this problem.  While unemployment escalates and economic activity stagnates Ohio continues to shoulder much more than its fair share of the financial burden imposed by the federal government exacerbating the difficulty of lasting economic recovery, while California is on the receiving end.  Why the preferential treatment for California?  Could it be the number of congressional votes?  Could it be the large population of “undocumented” immigrants that bloat census district populations but have very little political voice and are easily bought with things such as immigration reform promises and free healthcare for mothers who deliver “anchor babies”?  These inequalities cannot persist forever and if our government doesn’t wake up and smell the coffee soon they will wake up to the smell of burnt toast…

I don’t know who first coined the phrase “ObamaNation” but they forgot two words:  “of Desolation”..

Posted in Health Care, National Politics. Tags: , . 13 Comments »

Kennedy’s in Lorain? Meet Daly’s in Sandusky.

August 30, 2009 — buckeyerino

Deja vu all over again.  I’d written about the poker scheme hatched by Kennedy’s Billiards in Lorain.  Voila!  Read the Sandusky Register.  Same story, but this time the gambling scheme is being sought by Daly’s Pub in downtown Sandusky.

Governor Strickland, thanks to you, I think we are sliding headlong down that slippery slope.  I hope you feel guilty.

Posted in gambling, Local Politics, State Politics. Tags: , , . 1 Comment »

$876,831

August 30, 2009 — buckeyerino

Take a guess what that number means.  Need a hint?  The source of that number comes from the Contra Costa Times, of Contra Costa, California.

Have you figured it out yet?

It’s what one person earned last year.  But these weren’t the earnings of a celebrity, nor were they the earnings of a lottery jackpot winner, nor were they even the earnings of some evil capitalist.

This person works for the government.  Not the federal government, mind you.  Not even a state government.  This person works for local government, but at a regional level rather than a municipal level.

According to the story in the Contra Costa Times, this person is the chief executive officer of the Washington Township health district of Alameda County, California.  The news organization is working on compiling a database revealing salaries of all public employees in the San Francisco Bay area, and they’ve provided two links for those who wish to peruse the database: here and here.

I have two thoughts that spring to mind.

First thought:

Umm . . . are we talking about  . . . the PUBLIC HEALTH sector?  You, know, the health sector that’s NOT capitalistic, that’s supposedly compassionate yet efficient and not overly expensive?

And after you look through more of that database for that one small segment of the country called the Bay Area, and you eyeball some other salaries of public health officials, could it make you question whether Obamacare will bring any improvement?  Oh, and, how about that PUBLIC OPTION?  Hmmm?  Will that add up to savings?

Second thought:

Regionalism.  Yuck.

Talking heads in the Cleveland area have been talking about regionalism.  There are already some regional bureaucracies in place in Northeast Ohio.  (NOACA comes to mind . . . yuck!)

Here’s the rub:  What kind of input do voters have on regional bureaucracies?

Would this CEO of a regional public health district in California be raking in $876,831 (her base salary, alone, is $633,393) if the voters had a say in the matter?

Don’t regional bureaucracies lend themselves to patronage appointments that are untouchable by voters?  What accountability mechanisms would voters have at their disposal?

From what the Contra Costa Times reports, it was like pulling teeth just to get these salaries disclosed to the public.  The fight went all the way to California’s Supreme Court in 2007 just to clarify that these salaries are matters of public record.  Beyond salaries, what other information might be lingering in the shadows of regional bureaucracies?

And when thinking about what reforms you’d like to see in Cuyahoga County government, be wary of proposals that place emphasis on appointed rather than elected officials as key to the reforms, because appointed officials are a step removed from voters.  Appointments don’t make government less political, nor do they make government less prone to scandal.  I still think the best remedy for Cuyahoga and other Ohio counties would be simply to change the election years for commissioners to odd numbered years.

Posted in Health Care, Local Politics, National Politics, Politics in the MSM, State Politics. Tags: , , , . 1 Comment »
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